A couple of months ago I suffered a leaky pipe that not only ruined my dining room carpet but warranted a builder hacking into the wall and concrete floor to locate it and tap it off. I submitted an invoice for trace and access and received a call from Aviva two days after posting to advise me that payment would be in my bank account within three working days. The money appeared as promised. Three weeks later I submitted my final invoice for restoration works and again received a phone call two days later and the money was in my account on the third working day. I was given an extremely good figure for replacement carpet and Aviva also agreed to make a contribution to my living room carpet as I had the same throughout the ground floor, which was fantastic. The only downside was Independent Inspections who incorrectly measured the whole area and as a result am still waiting for my stair carpet to be fitted, but that was not the fault of Aviva, in fact they rang me the very next day and offered me compensation in lieu of time off work. Aviva really exceeded my expectations and I would recommend them to anyone.

In 10 years with HSBC/Aviva, I've had to make two claims through their homeowners buildings and contents insurance. In both cases, their initial actions have been prompt and repairs to my property were completed in a very timely manner and to an excellent standard. The first incident involved the flooding of my floors in my dining room and kitchen from a faulty washing machine valve. Within 24 hours of the damage, Aviva had builders in the house lifting tile and cherry flooring to prevent mold and mildew damage. They gave official approval for the replacement of the flooring within 48 hours and gave me a very fair budget to go out and select replacement flooring, which was installed by their contractors to the highest standard. Communication all along was excellent. More recently, I had a late-night break in to my two garages (detached from my house, but still within my property boundary). After ringing the police, I rang Aviva who had their lock and door company (Evander) out within 4 hours to secure the garage. Evander determined the doors were damaged beyond repair and immediately ordered two new doors whilst temporarily fitting heavy-duty locks to prevent further entry and theft. The replacement of the doors was simple and to an excellent standard within a week. The contents adjuster mentioned in other posts, iVal, however, has been a significant problem. In the garages were several expensive tools and a good quality bike I've had for about a year and a half. I told Aviva from the outset that I did not have a receipt for the bicycle, as it was a cash purchase for me as a Christmas present by my ex. Aviva said there wouldn't be an issue as I estimated the value of the bicycle well-below the £1500 that my policy requires me to individually list bicycles. iVal, however, seems to have a very different view of the policy, and has been extremely slow and difficult to authorise the claim, Although the garages were obviously broken and ransacked (a neighbor returning home surprised the group and chased them off before they could take too much--which is in the police report) and the fact that I've only claimed for a very few items stolen, iVal demanded pictures of the bicycle so they could verify what was taken. I did manage to get a picture of the bike from family Christmas photos and from a friend who took a couple while were on a ride in the Lake District, but iVal is still dragging out the claim. I've contacted them twice and explained I do use the bicycle for transportation and really am being inconvenienced by this. I also am in the middle of home rennovations and the two tools stolen (circular saw and a heavy-duty hammer/chisel/drill) are needed for an ongoing project. Given this part of the claim has now been nearly 4 weeks ongoing with police, witness and photo-validation, it's getting close to time to complain. So, in all, I rate Aviva highly for their service and response as well as undertaking immediate property repairs. However, to this point, I have to say their contractor, iVal, is poor, at best.

The price is very reasonable. The cover is excellent. I have been with NUD for several years. Each renewal I shop around and whilst I can sometime beat the price by a few pounds, I am so happy with the claims experience that I am prepared to pay a little extra for the excellent peace of mind. After all - that's what insurance is for.

I decided to get a more competitive home insurance quote and after some research found that Norwich Union Direct (online) was nearly £300 cheaper than my existing policy with Lloyds!! It wasn't the cheapest policy available, but was the most recognisable insurer in the shortlist that I found on moneysupermarket.co.uk.

I had a few questions about house security that needed to be answered to ensure that the policy cover matched my old one and the woman that I spoke to at the call centre was courteous and knowledgeable. They advised that I should buy the policy through their website to get the best deal.

My policy documents came 2 days after I had signed up and I was able to chose qaurterly payments. The only downside to this was an admin charge which added about £20 to the policy total. It would be great if NU could waive this.

I have not had a claim so I may update this review if I feel differently, but at the time of writing I am really impressed by Norwich Union Direct.